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Resources > News Service > Bulletins > By Country/Territory > Guatemala > Deadly Landslide ...

Deadly Landslide Adds to the Misery of Guatemalan Massacre Survivors, January 16, 2009

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AdvocacyNet 
News Bulletin 172 
January 16, 2009 
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Deadly Landslide Adds to the Misery of Guatemalan Massacre Survivors 

January 16, 2009, Rabinal, Guatemala: A deadly landslide in the mountains of central Guatemala has dealt another blow to indigenous communities that suffered massacres and mass displacement during the construction of the Chixoy Hydroelectric Dam in the early 1980s.

On January 4, more than 4,000 tons of rock and earth fell along a mile-long stretch of the only road linking two remote villages in the state of Alta Verapaz in central Guatemala. The landslide on Los Chorros Mountain killed 38 coffee pickers who were commuting to work.

Victims of last week's tragedy were all members of the Coordinator for the Communities Affected by Chixoy Dam (COCAHICH), an umbrella group that is negotiating with the President of Guatemala for reparations resulting from the Chixoy construction. Twenty-eight communities were affected by the dam. One village, Rio Negro, suffered a series of massacres in 1982 after the villagers refused to give up their land for the dam.

Although the communities are encouraged by the government negotiations, the recent landslide underscores the lack of official interest in their well-being. Guatemalan Vice President Rafael Espada toured the region on January 10 and offered government support for the burial of victims. But COCAHICH reports that no aid agencies are yet working in the region to assist the families of the dead, or the displaced families.

COCAHICH is accepting donations of money, food, clothing, and bottled water through its sister organization, ADIVIMA*, which represents survivors of the 1982 massacres. ADIVIMA is a partner of The Advocacy Project (AP), which is supporting the appeal.

AP Peace Fellow Heidi McKinnon recently returned to the US from Guatemala, where she is volunteering with ADIVIMA, and wrote about the landslide in her blog.

The recent landslide is not the first to occur on the Los Chorros Mountain. Two people were killed in a landslide on December 14, 2008, prompting the Guatemalan emergency management agency, Conred, to post warning signs along the road and forbid auto traffic. However, as no other roads serve the area, many villagers were forced to use the stretch of unpaved highway to earn a living.

To date, 38 people have been declared dead and 16 bodies have been identified. Fourteen people are still missing and seven of the injured are still hospitalized.
    
The region lies near two geological faults, the Chixoy and Polochic. Distribution tunnels for the Chixoy Dam also run through the mountains close the site of the landslide, and geologists are testing for possible damage to the tunnels.

Some members of COCAHICH believe the landslide could be attributed to the Chixoy Dam itself, but no conclusive evidence has emerged so far to support that theory.

The Advocacy Project will hold two events on Rio Negro in Washington next week, and appeal for donations for the landslide victims.

* ADIVIMA's full name is the Association for the Integral Development of the Victims of Violence in the Verapaces, Maya Achi


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